Built in 1914, The Old Town Theater in Alexandria, VA has seen better days.  Little of the ornate artistry that covered the interior and exterior of this once beautiful landmark remains.  Our goal is to re-open the theater to the community as a live entertainment venue as early as this fall.  Every effort to restore, repair, or repurpose any of the original decor is being made.  However, bringing it back to it's original grandeur is far beyond our means.  With your help, we can make the theater's upcoming centennial celebration as grand as the night it first opened.

OLD TOWN THEATER ANNOUNCMENT:

Rob Kaufman of PMA Properties is pleased to announce that the Old Town Theater's 98 year tradition as an entertainment venue will continue! Much appreciation is due to the many Alexandria residents and business owners and his daughter who expressed such great sentiment with regard to the building's rich history. This strong pledge of support from the entire community has helped to breathe new life into this old building. Renovations are underway to return the Theater to it's original eloquence and should be completed by this fall.
A local production company will operate the theater as a live performance venue. A full calendar of matinee and evening performances featuring comedy, music, magic, and dance will be offered along with weekly appearances from nationally touring entertainers... a variety of shows with something for all ages! In addition to soft drinks and concessions... a gourmet, light fare menu will be offered, as well as a select list of beer and wine. Special events, catering, and full service production capabilities will be available.
With the theater's Centennial Celebration only two years away, each live show will feature an element of early cinema harkening back to a brief time in history when vaudeville and silent film shared a stage. When the theater opened as The Richmond in 1914, theater audiences throughout the country watched the vaudeville stars of yesterday, become the silent film stars of today, right before their very eyes. Icons like Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin paved the way from stage to screen and helped lead us all into a new era of entertainment.
Renovations on the theater are already underway with plans to open in the fall of this year. A new website will be up soon, and more details will be made available when the renovation is nearer to completion.

From the Office of Historic Alexandria

In April 1914, Ralph A. Steele and W. Harmon Reed obtained a permit to build a new theater on King Street between Columbus and Alfred streets. Plans called for the new building to rise two stories high with a brick front and a flat roof at an estimated cost of $7,500. The proposed theater was met with protest from some neighbors, such as the Demaine Funeral Home located next door, but construction proceeded and the Richmond Theater opened that summer. The Richmond was not only a place for entertainment but also served as a community hall, hosting bazaars, benefit shows and meetings, including an assembly of labor organizers led by Mary Harris Mother Jones in 1916. It also served as overflow classroom space for local students in 1915, and in 1917 as an impromptu meeting place for students who walked out of Alexandria High School to protest conditions there. In 1929, theater operators announced renovations for the Richmond, including a 21-foot electric sign and interior improvements like new seats and drapes. The theater became the Richmond Playhouse in the early 1960s but closed in 1972. In 1976, it became as a puppet theater and reopened as a twin movie theater in 1980, operating as the Old Town Theater. The Old Town Theater closed in the late 1990s but reopened  and closed once again and today we await the reawakening of the theater.